Should I buy a tablet?
 

I'm going on a university next year. Thus I'm wondering, whether a tablet wouldn't be useful for me.

The only significant usage which comes to my mind so far is reading the PDF e-books. E-readers are great for epubs but suck at PDFs. And here tablets are, probably, even better than computers.

On the other hand, I'll need a decent laptop anyway. It's much easier to program using it, write e-mails, etc. For portable things I have my N900. Many things can be easily done on one of these devices. And I'd rather not strain my budget for stuff of little usefulness.

Do you think there are any reasons to buy a tablet, if I'll have a decent laptop anyway? Is there any other usage where a tablet is decisively superior? Or maybe it's better to limit myself to a good laptop?

I'm planning to study informatics combined with physics.

Besides, is the price of the Jolla Tablet expected to rise above the $249 after the crowdsourcing campaign? Or will it rather go down?

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

Take a look att surfade pro. Make sure its pro model...pretty decent price on surfade pro 2 now...(since 3 is out)

Its a tablet/mini laptop.

What are you planning to do With tablet? jolla OS is not ready for real work.

Tablets to use for work, editing/read doc and notes.
1. Surfade pro(like a pc)
2. Galaxy note. Great for Taking notes
3. iPad/random android. (Pdf, ppt, words) android tablets cheap.
4. Jolla. Take some basic notes. Nothing advanced. Cheap.

I say, get a good laptop and start your education... You Will see if you need a tablet or not. So wait, and learn. Good luck!

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

Lenovo makes some interesting tablet/laptop devices. I have an older thinkpad that allowed you to twist the screen around and fold it down to make a tablet but i found it too bulky to use as a tablet. The newer ones seem better as they are quite a bit thinner.

http://www.lenovo.com/us/en/?cid=EDM...&esrc=NETMINNG

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

Tablets don't cut it for real work - good luck trying to type a text blindly on an on-screen keyboard! ;)

Get a Laptop - a real one, that doesn't restrict your choice on which OS to install or on which components to replace!
I'm thinking of a used Thinkpad X201T (convertible) for example. And I can name half a dozen similar devices if you ditch the tablet idea.

btw:
When I was your age we used pen and paper. But then again my grandpa told me the same thing about clay tablets and hand axes. :rolleyes:

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

Convertible is the way to go.
mscion and sulu are on the right path there.
Graphic art is my schtick...so the right tools for the job eh? :D
When you need needle point precision ...
when you need penabled work done that requires finesse...
when you want to be sloppy and simply use your fingers for casual navigation and use....
when you need a tablet and then need a laptop keyboard a moment later...
well then the convertible tablet laptops I mention below are the best for the job.
I have a couple of lenovo's
and 3 toshiba portege's the last model m780 is thick since it has the optical cd/dvd bay...but it is more than worth it. On one of my m780's I have it's ram maxed out.. and a 1 tb hard drive in it with no os installed it is purely for storage. I popped the removable optical drive out and bought a $10.00 optical drive-bay secondary hard drive caddy. I carry 4 laptop hard drives with me which have on #1- win7, on #2- 4 of my art distros, on #3- about a dozen distros for work and play... , and lastly on # 4- I have distros for experimentation , libre distros , rr's (rolling releases) obscure releases and the like etc. They all share the common internal 1 tb storage so I don't have to shuffle data around or have duplicates wasting space on every distro.

I have found in my travels that the toshiba portage line ...esp. the m700, m750 and m780 are fabulous...complete... no dock necessary . a step apart from the lenovo's and ibms. (which aren't too bad either) ...and both the lenovo "x---" convertible line and toshiba portege line work verrry well with linux. Very few distros will not work on the portege line.

I remem. having the serious tablets from back in the day. Fujitsu and the m1400 ....they are great...and all...terrible for when you need a keyboard though...unless you use a portable keyboard...then it's just irritating having peripherals every where hooked up...convertible tablet is best of all worlds...

I don't like the new ones out..."yoga" and crap...sure they are new and fast and thin...compat with distros is either terrible or questionable..I think the direction that most manufacturers are going (other than the portege line and the lenovo "x---" line) is pure garbage.
This is my opinion on what I have found trying out various models pertinent to my graphic work. As well as having a decent workhorse computer that had the guts and ability to do moderate to serious heavy work and play. For real intensive editing and the like I transfer my work for finishing to my relatively new workhorse home computer a w530 (My Desktop Replacement Killer...muahahahaha) it kicks arse.

portege m780 or lenovo x230 is the only serious way to go...
lenovo x230 is 2 yrs old now and the latest x240 is last years model ....and the x250 is due I'm sure.
portege is a few years older 2010-ish ..but frankly the specs hold up in compare.

You can find a portege m780 i5 for under $300...usually around the $200-250 range
a portege m780 i7 for $400-500 usually
And the lenovo x200 from 2010 is still viable as a current model ...a good beast ...and you can sometimes get them for under $100 ...usual price tends up to $150
the lenovo x220 is a little pricey
and the lenovo x230 has dropped from over a grand down into the (if you are lucky) 3-4 hundred dollar range but tends right now 'tween the $500 and $800 dollar range.

Orrrr...
You could say screw gettin a comp of any kind...tablet or otherwise...
you could simply wait until implants are mandatory :D

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

tablets are fairly useless to me when I could simply use a netbook, the main issue with tablets is lack of physical keyboard.

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

I really see tablets as more of an addition to a proper (laptop) computer for university work.

But it can sure be handy for reading slides/lecture notes/manuals/data sheets, especially in places where reading them from a laptop would be cumbersome (in a bus, on a sofa, etc.). That's at least how I used my HP TouchPad during my studies. :)

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

I've always been a desktop guy but I did pick up an HP Touchpad shortly after the clearance sale for a reasonable price.

I would say the main disadvantages of a laptop are as follows:

• Most of the time they need to be left plugged in as the battery would die after a few hours.
• They tend to be pricey when compared to a similar spec desktop.
• They're quite noisy.
• They produce a lot of heat.
• They tend to be big and heavy making them a pain in the arse to carry around.
• There's not a lot of choice if you're looking to avoid one bundled with Windows.

Tablets don't tend to suffer from these problems.

I normally leave my tablet connected to Wi-Fi (which I don't do with my phone in order to preserve the battery) so it becomes very useful for checking email when I'm not at my desktop. I also find it very handy for bedtime internet access (web browsing, TV streaming and e-book reading) but that's about it. These days I'm finding that I often need to do real work on the go and tablet won't suffice.

I've been considering buying a Chromebook to replace my Touchpad, not to use ChromeOS (I wouldn't touch it with a barge pole) but to install a full Linux distro. It's possibly the best of both worlds as they don't suffer from the usual laptop disadvantages I've listed above.

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

@marmistrz
I tell you this with all honesty, Tablets are consumption devices, not production devices.

Such as the purpose of a tablet is for mobile gaming and media. Or just lounging at home, curling up with it.

The only time a Tablet is ideal for production is if you have an iPad and a dedicated App for your service like in these circumstances:
- Like for a financial broker on his feet to and fro clients (a la coffee meetings).
- Doctors handling multiple patients in a hospital.
- An ordering/menu system in a fast food restaurant.

For university, you'll need to rely heavily on a good keyboard and trackpad. A pen feature is beneficial (mostly for equations, not much, but also for quick note taking). A touchscreen could be beneficial.

So to cover all your bases I recommend you:
1- Get a large smartphone (OnePlus One 64GB)
2- Get a small laptop (MacBook Air 11"/13" or Yoga or S7)
3- Use a notepad and pen, for efficiency, and to improve your pen skills

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

Those two have not been the case for quite a while.

That, too, is not as common as it used to be, although it depends on the make and type.

That is unfortunately 100% true. But, like me, you may find with a surprise that "Microsoft Tax" is often actually negative. Presumably because laptops without Windows come generally from small sellers who cannot compete with the likes of Dell et al who sell laptops in large quantities, pushing the price down.

Amen to that!

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

For a University student I'd suggest you buy a good laptop first. As good as you can afford. Possibly also buy an external keyboard and mouse. Check if you're living in halls for that first year that you can't connect it to a TV monitor in your room. Then you have a kind of desktop setup.

Ignore tablets. I've got 4 (iPad, 2 Androids and a Windows Tablet* as of this week) and they're all a massive compromise for any kind of work that involves typing, even with external keyboards.

Tablets are for lying on the sofa surfing, watching video and casual gaming.


* Microsoft UK were selling the HP Stream 7 for under £50 this week and I couldn't resist adding it to my website development testing stable. Might even use it for a server status display under my desktop monitor.

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

As an university student (computer science and information technology) I have done very well with my Thinkpad T60, pen and paper. Couple people from my class use tablet to read course materials (powerpoint and pdf). I have myself ordered Jolla tablet and hopefully it helps with my studies.

Good luck with your choice and with your studies. :)

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

Regarding laptops and Lenovo. I have x240 for work and x230 for home. And there are no real advantades of x240 vs x230. X230 is good device and it is 50% cheaper than x240.

For tablet I have been considering Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10 inch version. Reason is, that this device supports several users and fingerprint authentication. Good for family usage.

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

A little note: beware of the horrendous touchpads on the 2014 model year ThinkPads:

Lenovo admits new trackpad was a mistake, IDF 14

The 2015 model year should be hopefully fine again and the 2012 & 2013 still usually have the old design.

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

+1 for Thinkpad T60, it is legendary for robustness and costs next to nothing as secondhand device!

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

If you will have a decent laptop anyway maybe there are not any reasons to buy a tablet.

But in case you want something like a mix, an ultrabook / tablet you can check devices like the Vaio Duo 11 / 13, Vaio Tap 11 or Surface Pro. I have the Duo 11 and can't be happier with it. It was exactly what I was looking for. Sony has sold Vaio division so stores have deals on these devices.

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

For me, one thing a tablet has a decisive advantage over a bog standard laptop is (as you've already noted) the reading of PDFs, and also other ebooks, comics and similar stuff in portrait mode. Sure you can do that on a laptop too if you don't mind holding it clumsily and awkwardly in portrait orientation.

I recently got an Asus TX201 Trio - it's a 3-in-1 thing - the "keyboard" is a full x86 system which you can use independently by connecting to an hdmi/displayport monitor, the "screen" is an intel-based android tablet, you can connect the screen to the keyboard to use it as a laptop. When in laptop mode you use a dedicated button to switch display between "PC" and android. During the day I use it for work in laptop mode, at night I detach the screen and use it as a tablet for reading comics or watching videos to unwind.

As others have said for serious work you definitely don't want to be using a "tablet" OS. Eg on my desktop firefox I have 2 windows with a combined total of well over 100 tabs opened - try doing that on a tablet.

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

The same goes for tablets.
Imagine the price of a tablet that could keep up with your desktop! I'm almost certain it doesn't even exist.

Business laptops usually have user-controllable fans and under light workloads these fans don't even need to run.
If you have a fancy slim laptop on the other hand that might be different because good cooling systems usually don't mix well with slim devices.

They produce the same amount of heat that goes in as electricity. So it's only a question of efficient components.

I own a 12" subnotebook for almost 8 years now. It weighs 2kg. Weight has never been an issue for me. Size on the other hand is.

True. But in this case the situation is not as bad as it might seem.
For myself and some friends I bought several laptops (Dell and Lenovo) from professional refurbishers during the last years. On all of them the Windows was optional.
All these devices were in excellent condition or any unforseen problems were easily resolved. I think this is a good alternative for anyone who doesn't need the latest hardware.

Then why would you buy a Chromebook?
I don't see how this situation differs from a Windows-bundled device.
The big disadvantage Chromebooks tend to have hardwarewise is their lack of mass storage. You can find similar "real laptops" that don't have this problem (if you care).

Does that matter? In my view the problem is not in the price but in the freedom of choice.
There's no logical reason why I should buy a device that's bundled with any OS.

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

Oh yes, there is. Buying the same laptop for £499 with Windows or for £799 without Windows is a no-brainer. Replacing Windows with something else does not affect my freedom of choice.

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

Of course. The solution is to simply not buy it at all.
If the increase in price obviously exceeds the cost of the work that is required to ship a device without Windows instead of with it, there's clearly something wrong.
And nobody will convince me that the work that is required to swap an HDD with a Windows image for an empty one is worth £300.

It does.
Buying a device with Windows while in fact you don't want it generates a false impression on the demand for Windows.
That false demand is a good argument why computers don't need to be open. If everybody wants Windows anyway, then why care about hardware that runs on FLOSS in the first place?

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

I got this badboy used,

http://www.toshiba.co.uk/discontinue...tege-r700-155/

for £250, it came with a ssd which makes everything faster.

The only real issue is that it heats up very easily due to having one of the older generations i5 and should not be used for any kind of gaming, aka minecraft.

But I have sat in a lecture room, compiling something on the Sailfish SDK and the heat spiked and the fans went crazy, but it was never enough for any of my professors to mention it.

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

This is getting unnecessarily political. A pre-installed OS is just another feature I may not want, like Bluetooth or a built-in camera. Just like the other two, I will just not use it. If a laptop with Bluetooth is cheaper than an otherwise similar model with it, then I go for the cheaper one. The same with a pre-installed OS.

Compared to unwanted hardware components, a pre-installed OS or other SW has the extra advantage that it is easy to remove and doing so generally does not affect the warranty.

You may want to fight your windmills. I live in the real world.

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

An unwanted hardware component usually does not affect what I can do with the NEXT device. An OS forced on me by a de-facto monopolist can.
In fact it already does! When you call the support for a hardware problem the first thing they'll usually ask you to do is to restore or start the factory OS. If you refuse to ever start Windows due to whatever reasons you have a problem right here.

I almost was in this situation:
In 2010 I bought a Dell laptop which usually comes bundled with Windows. But I fought very hard to get it without it. A year later my graphics card died and the first thing the Dell support wanted me to do was to reinstall my original copy of Windows that came with the device.
It took some convincing, but after a while they realized that their DB entry was in fact correct and that I never received any Windows copy. Only then they were willing to deal with the problem regardless of the OS.

Of course you are free to go the easy way and buy all your computers with useless pre-installed Windows copies if that's too political for you.
But that is exactly the reason why I have to fight windmills.

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

I accept all your aguments except this one:

It is just as difficult to buy a laptop or tablet without a camera as it is without <choose your evil OS>. In fact, more so.

I was in a similar situation with my new car. It came with an iPod socket. Completely useless for me. More than useless, since it took some space in the whatever the compartment is called (see pic) that could otherwise be used more efficiently for other things.

http://www.volkswagen.co.uk/assets/c...ry_ipodmp3.jpg

If I had a choice, I would have bought one without it. But I did not :(

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

What makes no sense is the current status of the laptop market.

There's some really good laptops out there that's about $500 mark.
And they come with 1080p screens, Celeron/Core i3, 4GB RAM, 128GB SSD.

If you were to bump up to a Core i5, which the price difference would be <$50... you are in fact charged an extra $200. And say you want to jump to a touchscreen, which is <$5, you are charged at least $100. Then you want a modern 8GB RAM, costs <$20, you are charged another $150. What about the storage to 256GB SSD, costs <$100, you are charged $200. And if you were to go beyond 1080p, the panel's cost is $50, you are charged $400.

If you add these up, you get a price increase from the $500+ mark to the $2,000 mark.

I currently have one of the first Ultrabooks by Toshiba, its 4 years old, and got it for $1,200.
It has 4GB/128GB which is the equivalent of today's 8GB/256GB. The sharpest screen at the time was 1080p, but I instead got the 768p instead due to price and battery life trade-offs. The better screen required a ~$300 mark up, which is a "livable ripoff".

I mean imagine the Lenovo Yoga Pro 3 (8GB, 256GB). Now imagine it had a Core i5 instead. It would traditionally cost AU $1,550. But no, its got the slower (and cheaper) Core M and is on sale for AU $2,100. The prices have gone up by $500 !

I also compared this to the MacBook Pro Retina 13"... and it has the proper processor, but lacks a touchscreen and tablet mode, and its comparatively costs AU$2,100 (which is the price point its always been at).

The Dell XPS 13...?
Similar specs. Can't convert into a tablet. Costs $2,300.

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

The problem with comparing unwanted hardware with unwanted software is that you can't compare them.
If you want your laptop without a camera or your car without an ipod socket you need something else instead, at least some sort of dummy that replaces the module. With laptop cameras that was even the case some time ago, but they seem to have ditched that approach.

This means that the camera/socket module needs to be a module in the first place and that there's another module ready to replace it with. This costs money. If you're willing to pay for that I'm sure you'll get your laptop without a camera and your car without a socket. The problem is, that from your perspective as a single end-user this proice would be ridiculous.

The situation with pre-installed operating systems is completely different. At least the business class manufacturers offer different Windows versions anyway. Chosing one or the other boils down to installing another HDD with a pre-installed image. There's no technical reason for them to not have an option with an empty HDD.
I would be willing to pay the extra money it costs to swap that HDD and probably even the loss in advertisement income due to the missing bloatware on my HDD.
The problem is that apparently there are contracts between MS and the laptop manufacturers/vendors that say no laptop may be sold without an OS (not necessarily from MS). In return the MS licenses are basically for free. At least that's what a small vendor who also sells laptops with Linux told me some years ago. Unfortunately he couldn't go into detail due to an NDA.

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

We've veered off topic to tilt at windmills.

The HP Stream 7 I ordered from Microsoft UK arrived this morning. It's chunky, the screen is distinctly average but useable and Windows 8 is awful but it is going to be useful for me for testing and running some Windows only software I very occasionally have to run. It's a pity it doesn't have an HDMI out as it might have even made a semi-decent occasional desktop.

At £49 including Office 365 for a year it was actually £10 cheaper than just paying for the Office subscription, which I've put on my Mac. ;)

If you're not sure about tablets then watch out for these bargains.

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

+1 to that too.
t60 convertible tablet laptop is just that ...fab.

And yeah the price tag issues which have been mentioned...
yeah well...
a desktop is cheaper than a laptop which is cheaper than a tablet which is in turn cheaper than a convertible.
Also considering guts...oomph...computing power...what have you....essentially all the goodies..it's always been about what could be crammed inside the given space and still be at the edge of comfort...regardless of what the form factor was.
Some did / do it better...some did / do it worse.
For those thinking that a convert doesn't have the ability to accomplish serious work. I beg to differ. Either you haven't used what I use currently and /or had a bad experience with a tablet or convert. in the past....I had a few of my own...back in the early-early 2000's....the tablet pc's and convertibles just weren't anywhere near.
The only drawback today compared to then is that the screen real estate and screen res. was killer on some (acer travelmate c100, c300, portege m200, tecra m4, m7..absolutely a joy to graphically work on....both brands which I still use for sketching, painting and base initial work on before transferring to my portege m780 or x230...) ..they just don't make good screen sizes any more..let alone screen resolutions...I mean it is hard to beat the joy of a nice res like 1400x1050 SXGA or higher even ....on a penabled laptop or tablet..but yeah...they don't make them like that anymore sadly.
That's why I like the older convertible tablet/ laptops for graphic work (at least initial... if not almost all the way to finished state..before transferring to a more mod system for completion...)
The only thing I don't do on my m780 or x230 is serious gear-wrenching work that anything less than a desktop or desktop replacement killer normally couldn't do. Then I simply transfer said work to the more capable system for finishing. But those kinds of programs are few and far between (so far..as some serious progs get heavier and more consumptive in the future ..as the nature of things is wont to do..I'll slowly relegate less and less to my current graphic beasts ..and hunt down the next "current" model in the future.)

For me...work-wise I've had my bad experiences in the early years...but I quickly found what makes and models I liked and needed to get the job done ...
So yeah...
In the end it depends on the usage...the need.
A desktop is great ...but uncomfortable and not portable.
A laptop is great ..but doesn't have the guts of the desktop nor the uber comfort and tactile interface of a tablet sittin' on the couch.
A tablet is great...but doesn't have the desktop guts and is pitiful to type on unless you have an external keyboard...
Depending on the make, model and year ...a convertible can fit at least the comfort of the tablet and the convenience of the laptop ...but still...the computing power winner goes to the stationary giant box under the desk ...or...the desktop replacement killer laptop.
For the time being....

It's been mentioned before....and it is sound advice...
research, research, research...
find out what specs you really need 1st.
2nd...don't buy the latest..buy an older model..try out what you "think" you want . If it appeals to you ...and subsequent newer models by the same producer offer nothing but a better experience....then there is your answer for the potential for a future investment.

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

Proof is in the pudding...
money where the mouth is...
and alllll those horrid platitudes...
What an old portege m200 can do is this...
All these were done using the m200 ...very minute later editing was done on the m780 and finally my desktop replacement killer....but only because I didn't wish to wait for the editing process to finish on ...essentially... a very old m200...however grand she is...I need her for more work while the editing is taking place :D
To understand...initially I do a real graphite sketch and rough pen and inks to almost finished pen and inks...working on areas up to 6 ft x 6 ft. and larger..
All on the original surface...(since a great deal of initial emotion is lost doing iterations)..then scan it...comparably the m200 can handle the size pound for pound, inch for inch, pixel for pixel.
on the m200 I clean up the muddiness.....see what I can do to improve the physik dimensions ...play with some colours ....see what works essentially. Best copies win. I then reduce said copies for printing everything from tshirts, patches, mugs, and illustrated limited edition runs of prints.
Then I hit the shop make a single rendition in a carving...usually antler...sometimes wood.
Then I go back to the physic original and finish it properly referring to my digital work and finish it exactingly in oils.
(This is what I do for kicks...
My serious work is purely in carving, harps and making weird odd thingamajigs ... :D )

It keeps the integrity of the initial sketch while being able to work in multiple mediums and yet play with the initial sketch without fear of ruining it ...see what variables work and what ones don't ...and be able to finish it to my exacting satisfaction...

And what used to be the bane of all artists...
a truly monumentally epic waste of materials to produce a finished work ...
sweating and worrying that a single miss-stroke could destroy incredible amounts of hours of work...forever..
isn't even a thought I dwell on anymore.
All I can say is thank goodness for my convertibles.

http://s26.postimg.org/6krf4bcih/30_...8_24_22_AM.jpg

http://s26.postimg.org/nsxy9i0ih/30_...8_25_14_AM.jpg

http://s26.postimg.org/51w0zc5y1/30_...8_26_33_AM.jpg

http://s26.postimg.org/konacpjq1/30_...8_21_56_AM.jpg

http://s26.postimg.org/699yrjw2h/30_...8_18_54_AM.jpg

http://s26.postimg.org/6jhhawaop/30_...8_16_12_AM.jpg

http://s26.postimg.org/k489a0qhl/30_...8_28_00_AM.jpg

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

You simply disable that nasty camera and voila. On the other hand, absence of camera may make it harder to resell.

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

I'm looking for a new laptop to replace my 4 year old model.
I've narrowed the specs, but I can't help comparing them to superphone specs:
QSD 805 - Core i5 (or better)
2GB RAM - 8GB RAM (or more)
64GB NAND - 256GB SSD (or more)
5.2 to 5.7 inches - 10.0 to 13.3 inches
320ppi - 220ppi (or higher)
10hr - 10hr video test battery life (or more)
9mm - 15mm (or thinner)
190g - 1.3kg (or lighter)



And so far the models I found worth considering are:
MacBook Pro Retina 13
MacBook Air 13
Dell XPS 13
Dell inspiron 7000 2-in-1 13
HP Spectre x360
Lenovo Yoga Pro 3

What are your thoughts guys?

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

What are you going to use it for?

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

I'd go for macbook. It is a pretty decent HW.

I got a macbook pro 15" some 4 weeks ago. Of course it came with apple's OS bundled in but it was pretty easy to delete and install Linux in it.

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

I never understood that. You don't buy a Mac for the hardware. It is hugely overpriced for what it is. You can buy a much better hardware for the same lrice or the same hardware for a much lower price.

You buy a Mac for the OS. Buying a Mac and wiping the OS makes no economic sense whatsoever.

It is a much different situation with Windows. As discussed a page or two back, having Windows pre-installed often reduces the price of the hardware so it makes a lot of economic sense to buy one and wipe the OS. But Mac? No way.

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

I use it as an ordinary PC. I might dabble with Linux again, but its not a requirement since its hard to balance such hobbies with the limited free time.

Windows 8 is rubbish, but Windows 10 is upcoming so its okay.
I used to loathe OSX, but recently its matured much better.
In fact, OSX > Win8.

A proper keyboard + touchpad is essential. A touchscreen is only preferred if it converts to a tablet, but not essential.
I tend to use the speakers alot, so they should be very loud and good quality.
I like the option of ports like fullsized HDMI/SD slot even if I rarely use them.
I'm not doing any video editing or gaming.
I don't need a lot performance, but since this is an upgrade, I think it should be a proper one.
I mean no-one upgrades from an iPhone 4S to an iPhone 5, when the iPhone 6 is here.

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

Well, the HW is nice. In reality it is worth the money, you cannot get comparable hw for much less.
People often argue that apple is high priced, but they compare the products to lesser specced competetitors.

Sure it does, if you do not like macOS :D

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

That logic sounds like, "I don't like raisins, so I buy buns with raisins and take the raisins out. Who cares that there are bigger and cheaper buns without raisins slighly to the left on the same shelf." Well, to each his own ;)

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

Please name the cheaper & bigger buns please!

I've always had IBM's and later Lenovos when they changed the brand. Now I needed a new computer and all that was available was a selection of HP's and Dells. Both are crap I want to stay far away from... anyway the other option is to go with MAC so I took that, after making sure I can nuke the crap it comes with and install a proper OS. :D

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

Just as another point of view, I have to say that there is a significant advantage to Apple hardware from one perspective (at least in the last few years) -- not so much in the raw processing power per dollar, but in the engineering of each device. I have several Mac Minis now; these things are wonderfully reliable, they run relatively cool (particularly the newer versions), and they run absolutely silent. Even if you push them enough that they have to run the internal fan at high speed, they still only make a quiet "woosh" noise when running.

My mother replaced her Android tablet last year with an iPad. The Android tablet (from a cheap manufacturer, admittedly) couldn't last two hours without being plugged in, and eventually started rattling as you moved it around as something had broken off internally. The iPad lasts her all day without needing to be recharged, and is built like a tank.

I really do have problems with Apple's penchant for designing non-upgradable computers, and I doubt I will ever purchase an iMac (as I think integrated screens are the absolute wrong way to go for a desktop computer). But Apple hardware isn't necessarily overpriced. :)

Re: Should I buy a tablet?
 

Considering health and safety standards...
the bigger question is...
Are those really raisins in those buns?...

(disclaimer: not to dis raisins...I happen to love raisins..especially in baked goods)

as far as what is best or whathaveyou...
Kangal I believe you just finished talking on the topic not so long ago concerning the fact that the guts of modern computing machines were becoming uniformly identical.
Which is for the most part true.
We are heading towards a monoculture in that sense ...where the only difference is becoming the os on top of the same thing the next guy's got.
...Becoming really nothing more than a battle between Brand-Name loyalties.